[Jlall]

9x Txx QJTx KJxx

imps, auction starts on your left:

1C 1S 2D p
2N p 3N p
p p

Partner leads the H2 (4th) and you see this:

---

The heart is ducked to your ten and declarers jack. Declarer leads a diamond and partner pitches the HQ, and the D is ducked to you. You play?

[Echognome]

I think the diagram is a bit off. Shouldn't dummy be on our right?

Anyway, this is an alarm clock signal and I'm having a hard time figuring out what partner wants.

My first thought was a spade, but if partner really wanted spades to defeat the contract, why didn't he lead one? It would surely be our best bet if his spades were good enough.

So, I'm going to take a chance and lead a small club.

[cherdanno]

One thing is sure - the HQ tells us that partner worked out that we have two diamond stops, and is telling us that the obvious play of a heart back, to knock out dummy's entry, doesn't work.

[karlson]

Why should partner lead a spade from a tenace with not much outside and risk giving declarer the 9th trick? He had no idea there were 7 diamonds in dummy.

Our natural play here would quite possibly be to lead a heart to try to knock out the dummy entry before diamonds are set up, hoping that partner's hearts are as good as K9x(x) or KQxx. Partner is telling us that that won't work.

Still, a club rather than a spade is very tempting. A spade needs AQJxx with partner, a club will do if he has ATxx. If he has Qxxx then for declarer not to have already misplayed it, partner must have ♠KQxxx or AQxxx, which means he can still shift to a club himself after a spade through.

[Jlall]

Echognome, on Aug 10 2009, 06:26 PM, said:

I think the diagram is a bit off. Shouldn't dummy be on our right?

yep sry i never use diagrams, hope i fixed it now.

[nigel_k]

A spade is best if partner has AQxxxx or AQJxx. He would probably have led a spade with the first one and might also with the second one as hoping for two entries with partner is optimistic compared to one entry and runnable spades.

A spade is also necessary if partner has KJxxxx of spades and the club queen (or ace) with no spots as declarer has to duck the spade switch, and we can only get two clubs.

A club works if partner has Q9x or better.

It looks like a club is a better shot.

[Hanoi5]

♠9

[shyams]

Club K

1. If partner wanted a spade, he had to do nothing special. It would be our obvious shift.
2. There is a possibility that partner led the 3rd best (i.e. from H Qxx). Can't be certain of this; but it could be possibly to protect his tenaces -- e.g. AQxxx Qxx void Q98xx

[Phil]

Ringgggggggggggg.

Low club.

[Fluffy]

play a heart and see his face, it will be the last time you can do it .

Seriously, partner doesn't knwo our hand, he is just telling us that the hearts are not working and we need to switch. I think a low club its best.

[pooltuna]

Jlall, on Aug 10 2009, 06:09 PM, said:

9x Txx QJTx KJxx

imps, auction starts on your left:

1C 1S 2D p
2N p 3N p
p p

Partner leads the H2 (4th) and you see this:

---

The heart is ducked to your ten and declarers jack. Declarer leads a diamond and partner pitches the HQ, and the D is ducked to you. You play?

I'm leading a ♠ if partner didn't want a ♠ led he should have discarded one instead of the ♥Q

[maggieb]

I know for sure that if partner had discarded a discouraging spade we would all be playing a heart back. And we know that that's wrong: partner had 4 hearts and not the king.

So partner's discard does not ask for a spade. It also is not a wake-up discard, guys! Partner may not know what black suit we need to play but he does know that declarer will be able to set up the diamonds and chose to let us know.

For a spade continuation to be right we need partner to either have 5 very strong spades, or 6 decent spades. (if partner has KJxxxx Qxxx - Qxx we need to play a spade. Declarer has to duck and partner will shift to a club for 5 tricks.) With those hands partner would likely have led a spade or encouraged spades. So it must be right to play clubs.

[Jlall]

I was partner, I thought I made a thoughtful pitch with KJxxx Qxxx --- Q98x. Note I cannot afford a club pitch as partner might have KTxx of clubs.

If I had AQJ of spades I would definitely pitch an encouraging spade, so I thought a club was indicated.

[skjaeran]

Partner told us that we're unable to kill dummy's heart entry, nothing more.

We've got to evaluate what to switch based on our hand, the bidding and partner's lead.

Declarer will, in time, get five diamond and three heart tricks, we need to set up three tricks before declarer sets up his diamonds.

It looks like the best shot for that is clubs, so I'll switch to my lowest club.

[karlson]

Edit: nonsense.

[Fluffy]

I think you are wrong this time karlson, partner didn't have 6 spades, and a spade siwtch taken by the ace should have his way to 9 tricks losing only 2 spades and 2 diamonds

[nige1]

Jlall, on Aug 10 2009, 06:09 PM, said:

Scoring: None


1C 1S 2D p
2N p 3N p
p p
Partner leads the H2 (4th). The heart is ducked to your ten and declarers jack. Declarer leads a diamond and partner pitches the HQ, and the D is ducked to you. You play?

---

Good problem, JLall! All that expert analysis makes it possible to appreciate the likely necessity for an immediate ♣ lead. But would a low heart from partner have conveyed an even clearer message?

[Jlall]

nige1, on Aug 11 2009, 05:13 PM, said:

Jlall, on Aug 10 2009, 06:09 PM, said:

Scoring: None


1C 1S 2D p
2N p 3N p
p p
Partner leads the H2 (4th). The heart is ducked to your ten and declarers jack. Declarer leads a diamond and partner pitches the HQ, and the D is ducked to you. You play?

---

Good problem, JLall! All that expert analysis makes it possible to appreciate the likely necessity for an immediate ♣ lead. But would a low heart from partner have conveyed an even clearer message?

dunno, we play udca anyways so a low heart would encourage, but not sure why a low heart would be better than the queen in general.

[nige1]

Jlall, on Aug 10 2009, 06:09 PM, said:

Scoring: None


1C 1S 2D p
2N p 3N p
p p
Partner leads the H2 (4th). The heart is ducked to your ten and declarers jack. Declarer leads a diamond and partner pitches the HQ, and the D is ducked to you. You play?

---

nige1, on Aug 11 2009, 05:13 PM, said:

Good problem, JLall! All that expert analysis makes it possible to appreciate the likely necessity for an immediate ♣ lead. But would a low heart from partner have conveyed an even clearer message?

Jlall, on Aug 11 2009, 05:16 PM, said:

dunno, we play udca anyways so a low heart would encourage, but not sure why a low heart would be better than the queen in general.

If you work out that partner won't discard a ♥ if he wants a ♥ return, then partner's ♥ discard may be a Lavinthal signal with say ♠AQJ87 ♥Q732 ♦- ♣5432 when he desperately wants to discourage the tempting but fatal ♣ switch

[benlessard]

If you play a discouraging S we are going to return H, a discouraging clubs will be for a S switch.

A low H is probably spades but its less clear. The Q of H has to be for for clubs.

You bid spades, lead H. So any weird signal should be asking for clubs otherwise youll never be able to ask for a club switch.